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Redwood City – The Board of Supervisors today appointed 14 residents reflecting the diversity of San Mateo County to the District Lines Advisory Commission.
Applications for the 15th and final seat on the commission will be received until noon on Monday, August 16. To be eligible, applicants must live in supervisorial District 4, which includes the cities of Redwood City, East Palo Alto and Menlo Park (east of El Camino Real) and the unincorporated area of North Fair Oaks.
More information and the application are available at https://cmo.smcgov.org/districtlines
The all-volunteer commission will hold a series of public hearings to gather public input on the supervisorial district boundaries and recommend possible changes based on population data from the 202 Census.
The 14 commissioners were recommended by a committee formed by local chapters of the League of Women Voters, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that encourages informed and active participation in government.
“We all owe a special thanks to the League of Women Voters for poring over dozens and dozens of candidates to recommend a group that truly reflects the diversity of San Mateo County,” said David J. Canepa, president of the Board of Supervisors.
“The next step is inviting every resident, regardless of age or immigration status to get involved in the process and contributing to our future,” said Canepa, who represents District 5 and served on a Board committee with Supervisor Don Horsley overseeing the recruitment effort. “Where those lines go helps to ensure everyone has an equal voice.”
Commissioners appointed unanimously by the Board of Supervisors are the following:
District 1
Nirmala Bandrapalli (Burlingame)Nathan Chan (Millbrae)
Hermes Monzon Ruiz (South San Francisco)
District 2
Marcus Barber (San Mateo)
James Lawrence (Foster City)
Kailen Sallander (San Mateo)
District 3
Benj Azose (San Carlos)
Nadia Bledsoe Popyack (Moss Beach)
Marian Lee (San Carlos)
District 4
Mark Dinan (East Palo Alto)
Rudy Espinoza (Redwood City)
District 5
Rita Chow (Daly City)
Miguel Louis (Rudy) Guerrero (Daly City)
Priscilla Romero (Daly City)
The Board also selected two alternates:
David Chu (District 1) (Burlingame)
Mark Olbert (District 3) (San Carlos)
The County received a total of 65 applications following an extensive recruitment process that included providing an online and mail-in application in four languages.
All applications were forwarded to the League of Women Voters, which recommended the 14 candidates based on guidance from the Board of Supervisors. This guidance included prioritizing forming a commission with a membership “that is geographically diverse and consistent with the County’s emphasis on valuing diversity, equity, and inclusion.”
To fill the 15th and final seat, the Board voted 5-0 to open applications from residents of District 4 so that each district would have three members. Once the application period closes at noon on Monday, August 16, the League of Women Voters will recommend a candidate who will automatically be appointed to the commission.
Mission of the District Lines Advisory Commission
Every 10 years, districts must be redrawn so that each district is substantially equal in population (one person, one vote). This process will use data from the 2020 Census to help ensure that each board member represents about the same number of constituents.
The 15 commission members in the coming weeks will launch a series of meetings and workshops to gather public input. District boundaries must take into consideration topography, geography, cohesiveness, contiguousness, compactness of territory and communities of interest.
All materials related to the effort will be posted on a dedicated website that will also include an online mapping tool where residents can draw their own districts and submit them to the commission.
The commission will ultimately recommend a draft map or maps to the Board of Supervisors for final approval.
“Drawing lines matters,” said Supervisor Horsley, who represents District 3. “This is a once-a-decade opportunity for all residents to tell the commission what they consider their community and where they think the lines should be drawn.”
Learn More:
Residents interested in applying for the open seat representing District 4 can apply online or mail a printable pdf available at https://cmo.smcgov.org/districtlines
The application is available in English, Spanish, Chinese and Tagalog.
To be notified of Supervisorial District Lines Updates, sign up on the County’s website.
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